Thursday, January 17, 2002
The Pete Principle
Here's the "Pete Principle" (named after perhaps the most perfect example of this type of person I've ever met).
We've been working at a client for pushing three months now; within the first week we had our application framework up and running, ready to publish content. Within the second week, we had four report templates ready to be populated with data. Access to development data came about six weeks after that. If we're lucky, we'll have access to production data next week.
Yesterday, sitting back after several frustrating days of egg-shell walking, and trying to ensure that one key stakeholder wouldn't be upset by various suggestions, the team and I realized that, had we not been working so closely with said key stakeholder, we'd have been done weeks ago.
The Principle, then, states that a single individual, in the right place, with enough apathy toward an outside solution, can derail a project for weeks or months.
Sent to me by Mark Caufman. Alistair Cockburn on Games Programmers Play: software development is a group game, meaning it is goal seeking, finite and cooperative.
The way into work today was nothing but sunshine and green lights. Even left-turn lights. Cool, cool.
Copyright 2002 © Robert K. Brown
